18 Best Moments from President Obama and SNL’s Cecily Strong at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner

Now we’re not here to get all political on you, that’s not what this site is about. But we cannot turn down a good roast when the opportunity presents itself. Last night was the White House Correspondents’ Dinner, a celebration held by an organization of journalists founded in 1914 who cover the ongoings of the White House and the President of the United States.

The annual dinner began in 1920 and has been a tradition ever since – unless there has been a death in the cabinet or a political crises. This year, we’ve captured 18 of the best moments from this year’s WHCD from President Barack Obama and Saturday Night Live’s Cecily Strong. You can find the list and the complete speeches after the jump.

As we begin the fourth quarter of Obama’s presidency, despite a declining approval rating, the man continues to deliver a good speech thanks to his timing. He always carry himself well and his speech writer definitely knows how to infuse humor at the right moments. Last night, Obama’s speech absolutely crushed it, covering a range of topics including immigration, the upcoming presidential election, Hillary Clinton, the state of Indiana, himself, and even his wife Michelle. No one was safe.

Some may say that Obama has lessened his interest in current affairs:

“After the midterm elections my advisers asked me, ‘Mr. President, do you have a bucket list?’ And I said, ‘Well, I have something that rhymes with bucket list.'”

“Take executive action on immigration? Bucket. New climate regulations? Bucket. It’s the right thing to do.”

And the debate still wages on whether the President is a true American:

“Being president is never easy. I still have to fix a broken immigration system; issue veto threats; negotiate with Iran; all while finding time to pray five times a day. Which is strenuous.”

There’s no hiding how much the position can age you:

“Meanwhile Michelle hasn’t aged a day. I ask her what her secret is, she says, ‘fresh fruits and vegetatbles.’ It’s aggravating.”

He didn’t hide his demeanor toward others:

“Six years into my presidency, some people still say I’m arrogant, aloof, condescending. Some people are so dumb. No wonder I don’t meet with them.”

Reflecting on his legacy:

“Just this week, Michelle Bachman actually predicted that I would bring the Biblical end of days. Now that’s a legacy. That’s big. I mean, Lincoln and Washington, they didn’t do that.”

It was brave to acknowledging how he’s let down others, specifically Hillary:

“I have one friend just a few weeks ago she was making millions of dollars a year, and she’s now living out of a van in Iowa.”

Having Presidential power, he “hacked” into Hillary’s Instagram account, exposing these incriminating photos:

We know Obama loves his food, but was saddened that Memories Pizza refused service:

“You know I tease Joe [Biden] sometimes, but he has been at my side for seven times. I love that man. He’s not just a great Vice President, but a great friend. We’ve gotten so close in some places in Indiana, they won’t serve us pizza anymore.”

Running for office is no easy task, as the President notes that candidates will make mistakes:

“Already we’ve seen some missteps. Turns out Jeb Bush identified himself as Hispanic back in 2009. It’s an innocent mistake. Reminds me of when I identified myself as American back in 1961.”

He couldn’t leave out Trump:

“And Donald Trump is here – still”

In a surprise turn of events, Obama invited his anger translator out on stage, Luther (Keegan-Michael Key) to help him vent out his frustrations:

“Because despite our differences, we count on the press to shed light on the most important issues of the day,” President Obama remarks.

And as Luthor so humbly translates:

“And we can count on Fox news to terrify old white people with some nonsense.”

Watch the complete speech here:

Following Obama’s act would be no easy feat for SNL cast member Cecily Strong. And in all honesty, I don’t think she managed to. It was a hard roast to follow, but she got in a few good ribs at the expense of the 2016 presidential race candidates, our country’s law enforcement, as well as women’s rights.

Strong is the first woman to be a guest speaker since Aretha Franklin in 1999. Previous guests have included Conan O’Brien (1995, 2013), Jay Leno (1987, 2000, 2004, 2010), Stephen Colbert (2006), Sinbad (1991), Bob Hope (1944, 1953), and Frank Sinatra (1945), among others.

Her speech definitely felt like she was on SNL delivering a dry Weekend Update report, a segment she is very familiar with. However, her deadpan shtick felt fairly inorganic compared to Obama’s. She stayed confident, but I don’t think she had the energy or liveliness as last year’s presenter Joel McHale. The audience definitely didn’t think so. But here are my favorite moments from her speech last night.

She hopes for a career boost like her predecessor and his “hit” show Community ha seen:

“I feel very lucky to be here. Last year’s host, Joel McHale, proves that speaking at this dinner is an amazing opportunity that can take from starring in a show on NBC all the way to starring in that same show but on Yahoo.”

Knowing she’s just a comedian, she takes no pleasure in telling politicians how to do their jobs:

“I promise, since I’m only a comedian, I’m not going to try and tell you politicians how to do politics or whatever. That’s not my job. That would be like you guys telling me what to do with my body. Can you even imagine?”

There have been a handful of security incidents at the White House recently, a matter Strong would like the press to lay off on:

“Let’s give it up for the Secret Service. I don’t want to be too hard on those guys. They’re the only law enforcement agency in the country that will get in trouble if a black man gets shot.”

Did you think Fox News would go unscathed:

“That channel is all hot blonde ladies and old dudes. Every show on Fox News looks like a party scene from Weekend at Bernie’s.”

Strong made it a clear point of the evening that she advocates Hillary’s run for office:

“Hilary’s campaign slogan is ‘It’s your time.’ Which I assume is what she says into a mirror as she’s deadlifting 200-pounds.”

And she even made journalists take a vow before the upcoming election race as she asked them to repeat the following:

“I solemnly swear not to talk about Hilary’s appearance because that is not journalism.”

Finally, she couldn’t help but notice Obama’s hair color:

“After six years in office your approval rating is at 48-percent, not only that, your grey hair is at 85-percent. Your hair is so white now it can talk back to the police.”

You can watch the entire speech here: